Method of making coiled coils



Jan'. 19,v 1943.

R. H. BEEBE Re. 22,252 METHOD OF MAKING COILED CDILS I AOriginal Filed Aug. 22, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 HUI ATTORNEY Jan. 19, 1943.

' R. H. BEEBE ETHOD OF MAKING COILED COILS Original Filed Aug. 22', 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR R, H. 556255. 'BY/)73V ATT I RNE comparable Reissued Jan. 19,1943

22,252 METHOD F MAKING COILED COILS Raymond H.

by mesne assignments, to Westinghouse g Company, East Pittsion of Pennsylvania ated September 3, 1935,

trie a; Manufacturln burgh, Pa., a corporat Original No. 2,013,432, d

Beebe, Bridgeport, Conn., assignor,

Elec- Serial No. 686,205, August 22, 1933. Application for reissue September 2, 1937, Serial No.

(c1. s-s4) 10 Claims.

the coiled filament may vconstitute a light source upon the passage of electrical energy there-v through. Obviously, filaments for lamps of different wattages vary in the length, pitch and diameter of the coil.

Although a coiled lamp filament has been found wire, usually f of sumcient. .length to provide the necessary resistance so that practical to give satisfactory commercial results,

it has been proposed to again coil the coiled filament to produce a iight source having the shape of a helix, the turns of which are made of helically wound wire and consist of what may be termed primary and secondary coils.

It has been found that an incandescent lamp filament of the coiled-coil type consumes considerably less electric current. for a given light emission. than a straight filament. or one wound in a single helix having the same absolute length. and with the same current consumptio a coiledcoil filament has a higher light emission. This may be attributed to the mutual heating effect between separate sections of the turns of the niament lying close to one another. Furthermore. it has been found that when using a coiled-coil filament the relatively larger amount of light produced is confined to a comparatively small space.

This is particularly true when the coiled-coil nlament operates in a bulb having a filling of an inert gas.

It has also been found that. by the use o f a l filament or light source as above described, the mounting of the same is simplified inthat a lesser numb'er of support wires may be employed, thus reducing the material cost of the device.

Although the use of the coiled-coil type of filament has been heretofore proposed, certain difficulties existed in producing this type of lament, particularly in producing such coiled-coil lathe proper length for use in lamps and placed in a bath which dissolves the mandrel 'but not the tungsten wire.

The other method oi.' manufacturing helicallywound filaments consists in driving a tungsten wire into a cavity die so that it issues in the form of a helix in the absence of a mandrel. This latter practice, which is termed mandrelless winding is more clearly shown in Patent No. 1,670,499 issued May 22,1928.

In winding laments on a machine of the mandrelless type it is possible 'w produce coiled sections at a high rate of speed and since the operation of removing a mandrel is eliminated, the cost of manufacturing is appreciably reduced.

By reason of the high rate of speed at which coils may be produced on the mandrelless coil winding machine and since no mandrel removing operation is required, it is desirable. when considering the manufacture of coiled-coil filaments, to provide a method of producing such filaments in connection with the mandrelless coilwinding method and the present method makes it possible tc accomplish this end.

It is to be understood, however, that the present method, although shown and described herein as applied to the coiling of a coiled filament wire wherein the original coil was made on a mandrellessmachine, is applicable to coils produced on a mandrel after the mandrel has been removed.

It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a simple and effective method of helically coiling a helically coiled wire.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method 'whereby a fllamentary wire may be wound to helical form, and the helix as formed. may be coiled into a second helix.

Another` object of the invention is to provide means for forming a wire into a helix of a given pitch and in changing the vspace relation of ,the

turns of the helix to produce a. second helix.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be understood from the following description ments with the desired accuracy and at a cost to the cost of other lamp parts. In the incandescent electric lamp industry two methods are employedfor the manufacture of the primary helically wound nlaments. One method is to wind the refractory wire. which is usually tungsten, upon a mandrel of indefinite length. the mandrel-wound wire is then cut into sections of together with the accompanying drawings, in

which i Fig. l is a fragmentary side elevational view of a machine for winding a helically coiled wire into a secondary helix and shows means fordmaking the primary coil;

Fig. 2 is a view taken on line II-II in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged diagrammatic view showing the relative positions of the primary coil and the spacer member for forming the primary coil into a secondary coil;

Fig. shows a lamp Fig. 4 is a view taken on line IV-IV in Fig. 3, and

stem including a coiledcoil iliament.

Although the present invention may be practiced to coil a helically wound wire whether it is fed from a spool or other source of supply, it may also be utilized in connection with a mandrelless coil winding machine such as disclosed in the above mentioned Patent No. 1,670,499.

As illustrated the clude a coil winding present machine may indie Il which is part of a mandrelless coil winding machine II. 'I'he complete machine is clearly shown in the above mentioned patent and it is thought only necessary in the present drawings to show the force rollers I2 and I3 which drive a illament wire I4 into a die lil. The die Ill usually consists of a diamond mounted on a die rod Il. The diamond is provided with a concave cavity into which the iliament wire I4 is thrust so that it issues in the form of a helix IB. This helix may, for the purpose of the present description, be considered as a primary coil. This coil, as it issues from the die, is led through a guide passage I1 formed in a sleeve I8 which sleeve constitutes a spindle for a pinion I9, the spindle being journaied in an adjustable standard or bracket 2|. 'Ihe pinion I9 is in mesh with a similar pinion` 22 rotatable on a stud 23 secured in the bracket 2| which is provided Vwith a foot piece 24 slidable in a guide support 25.

For the purpose of moving the bracket 2| to adjust it in a horizontal plane the foot piece 24 is provided with a threaded aperture 26 to receive a screw 21 the free end of which is provided with a head 28 which abuts against a plate 29 so that a rotation of the head 2l causing a rotation of the 1 screw will serve to move the bracket 2|.

When the helically wound lament or primary coil Il travels through the passage I1 it rotates about the longitudinal axis of the helix, this rotation being caused by the ma'ndrellessoperation4 of boiling. Theiiiament rotates at relatively high speed since in practice it is necessary to speed up the ceiling operation to meet the rate oi production of other lamp parts.

For the purpose of winding the primary coil into a secondary coil the sleeve I8 is provided with a nose piece 3| and it is at this point that the operation of forming `the secondary coil is Periormed.

It has been found that if the turns of a helically wound coil of a given pitch' are spread apart at predetermined points on the circumference of the coil that the helically wound coil will take theV form of another helix'. The present con-- struction shows one means of operating on a primary coil tol-progressively move a member or spreader between successive tunis of the coil.

When operating upon a helically wound coil as it issues from a coil winding machine and is thus rotating, it is necessary to provide means so coordinated and timed as to perform the spreading operation after each revolution of the primary coil so that the point at which the spreadingtakes pla'ce is always the same rwith respect to the circumference of the primary coil.

It has been found practical to perform the spreading operation by means of a knife-like member!! which may -be carried on a disc Il. 'I'he disc is rotatable on a shaft 34 driven by a suitable source oLpower (not shown). The disc 3l is provided with a toothedsegment 3,5 disable and coiled it is obvious that posed in mesh with the pinion 22. The segment and pinion are so proportioned and arranged that a movement o! the segment will cause one complete rotation of the pinion. 'I'his will obviously cause a complete rotation of vthepinion I! and sleeve I l which is rotatable therewith. Extending from the nose piece 3| of-the sleeve is a guide ilnger or stub mandrel 38 and as the coil I8 issues from the sleeve it passes adjacent to and travels over an abutting surface 31 (see Fig. 4) on the mandrel 36. At this point a separator member or blade is moved between the turns. This blade is carried by the disc 33 and is sp timed in its operation that with each complete rotation of the primary coil about its axis the blade enters between the turns. This operation 'is progressive and as each successive-turn advances, the blade passes between it and the next succeeding turn. With the arrangement shown the points of separation for the tunis will be in a straight line along its length.

- As the blade operates 'to separate the turns, the primary coil begins to form a secondary coil 4II which is guided through a guide tube 4| and thence -to means for cutting the coil into short sections for use as filaments forJ lamps. Means for cutting the secondary coil into sections may be the' same as used for cutting up the mandrelless wound wire as shown in the above mentioned patent.

The mandrel 3l` is, as above described, carried on the spindle IB and therefore rotates with the primary coil so that the secondary coil as it is made will move with the primary coil and be held under control and fed into the guide tube 4I. With the present construction the primary coil winding operationl is terminated during the movement of the blade 32 between the turns. The

operation of making the primary coil may, how-` ever, be made continuous by providing a plurality of blades 32 operating in timed relation to the rate oi' rectilinear movement of the primary coil. It will be appreciated that the operation of the blade 32 must be timed accurately and in the present construction the disc 33 is adjustable to move the segment toward or away from the pinion 22 thus changing the pitch diameter and varying the degree of movement of the pinions and consequently the mandrel 38 on the nose piece 3|. 'I'he nose piece is also slightly adjustis held against relative movement by a set screw 42' extending through a slot 4l in a ange on the sleeve I8. 'I'he sleeve and consequently the arbor is thus adjustable with respect to the'path of movement of the blade 32 and by such adjustments the pitch of the secondary coil may be varied. If the operation of making asecondary coil is performed on a helical primary coil i'ed from a source of supply as from a spool or it short lengths of coiled sections are to be again the primary coil would not be rotating and it would therefore only be necessary to actuate the blades in a denite time relation to the rectilinear path of movement of the primary coil.

The blade I2 may be made of sharp knife-like form having a wedge shape. If the blade is so disposed that the edge of the kniie :lust passes between the turns which are thus spread very slightly, a secondary coil of relatively large `diamsmall diameter will result. `It will. therefore,

a helically wound wire for diameter of the helix held vantage gained nnal filament to sag when used as used and operated to enter A-the space between each successive turn at the proper point about the circumference of the cylindrical primary coil.

When producing a light source in the form of a lamp of a given wattage certain conditions must be strictly observed. The length of the selected diameter iliament wire contained in the light source must be exact so that the predetermined resistance will be obtained and this length of wire must be contained in a given number of turns, the pitch ofthe helix must be kept uniform and the outside constant.

The problem involved will be appreciated when it is understood that filament wire ranges from about one-half mil or less to about five mils in diameter. This filament wire is then wound into a helix having an outside diameter ofI about 40 mils or less.

It will be evident therefore, that when winding this helix into a secondary helix the dimensions are still extremely small, and, up to the present time, the only method known for making these fine coiled-coil finamente was' to wind the primary filament on a mandrel, which was not only time consuming but did not give an article meeting ail the requirements from a practical or operating standpoint# As pointed out in the above mentioned patent, when winding a helical filament on a mandrelless machine, the wire is free qfrom tensional stress as distinguished from the mandrel wound filament which is subjected to tensional during the winding operation.

When making a coiled-coil filament, therefore, it is desirable to utilize mandrelless wound fila.- ments but it is also important to preserve the adby reason of the mandreiless stress winding. When plishedas heretofore proposed by winding the" helix ony a mandrel to produce the secondary coil, it is necessary to tightly wrap the primary coil on the mandrel. This results in a stretching or the secondary winding is accom-w55 of short sections of the primary coil to facilitate the welding or clamping operation to secure the filament to lead or support wires. This may be accomplished by the present method in the followingmanner. The coil turnseparator I! may operate to produce a secondary coil of a given length. The operation of the separator may then be terminated and a given amount of the primary coil may be permitted to issue. The separator 3l may then again be put into operation and anothersecondary coil produced. 'This intermittent operation of the separator will then produce an indeilnite length of filament composed of coiled-coil sections separated and connected by sections of the primary coil. The length oi' the sections of primary coil may be so proportioned that the coiled-coil portions may be separated by severing the primary coils midway between adjacent coiled-coil sections thus giving illa'mentary bodies to serve as light sources with terminals which facilitate the clamping or welding operation. l

It is to be understood, however, that coiledcoil laments may be used and are practical even without such terminals since the ends of the coiled-coils may be clamped or welded to support wires. In some cases the provision of terminals of the primary coil are desirable especially when coils of large diameter are used as in high wattage lamps.

It has been found that thepresent method makes it possible to produce coiled-coils of rela- In the present method which does not impose 40,` any tensional stress upon the wire, it has been found possible to wind coiled-coils having a wide range-of diameters. A coiled-coil produced by thelpresent method, as well as the method employe`dconstitute an advance step in the art of making incandescent lamps in that not only is it possible to save time and labor, but a better distortion of the wire and it is usually necessary to heat and thus soften the secondary coil to set it and prevent a change in diameter when the mandrel is removed. These operations tend to change the character of the wire and to some degree nillify the advantage gained by the mandrelless winding.

The present method makes it possible to produce a 4coiled-coil which is free from detrimental stress or strains which may tend to cause the alight source.

In the present method the operation of separating to change the space relation between por-'- tions of adjacent turns at a given point, makes it possible to produce a secondary coil in the absence of any tensional force, thus giving a new article in the form of a coiled -coil which possesses properties not found in other coils of similar form made by other methods.

When mounting the usual type of lamp filament it is the practice to either clamp or weld the ends or terminals of the filament to the lead wires and the same practice may be followed with the present`coiled-coil. When making a coiled-coil filament it has been found desirable to leave each filament with terminals consistins product is produced.

Although a preferred embo'diment of the invention is shown and described herein it is to be understood that modiiications maybe made therein without departing fromthe spirit ,and scope of the invention as set forthin the appended claims.

l form. and intermittently I claim:

1. The method of making a coiled-coil filalment which comprises moving a. filament wire into a die to produce a helix and in applying a force against the turns offthe'issuing helix to vproduce a secondary helix. y

2. The method of winding a secondary helix which comprises forming a primary coil by intermittently pushing a wire into a die to cause it to turn to helical form and intermittently rotate therefrom while moving axially along a predetermined path,and bending said helical coil by individually separating adjacent turns of the primary helix between said intermittent rotations thereof to provide a secondary coil.

3. The method of winding a second-ary helix which comprises forming a primary coil by pushing a wire into a die to cause it to turn to helical rotate therefrom while moving axially along a predetermined path, and bending said wire by applying force between the individual helical turns-during rest periods to 4:laatse l end successively wedge between lthe individuel change the space relation thereof to provide a secondary coil.

4. The method of winding a secondary helix which comprises intermittently pushing awire into a die to cause it to turn to helical form and intermittently rotate therefrom while moving axially along a predetermined path, and. applying force against the individual turns thereof between said periods of' rotation to bend said primary coll into a secondary coil.

,5, The method of making coiledcoil iilaments` which comprises intermittently pushing a wire into a die to cause it to emerge therefrom in helicalA form and intermittently rotate while moving axially, and moving a member between the individual turns thereof `between said periods of rotation to separate them to a greater extent on one side than on the other and cause the helical filament' to form a secondary helix.

6. The method of winding a secondary helical coil which comprises forming a primary coil while causing it to intermittently rotate and advance axially along a predetermined path, and causing aseparator element to wedge between the individual turns thereof between said periods of rotation, to i'orm a secondary helix.

7. The method of forming a secondary helical coil which comprises pushing a wire intermittently into a cavity die to cause it to turn to helical form. and emerge therefrom, while intermittently rotating as it advances step by step axially, and causing a separator element to move through a path substantially transverse to the longitudinal axis of said emerging helical wire y take the shapeot a turns thereof in sequence. while said coil is stationary between said intermittent rotations, to form a secondary helix.

8. The method oi* winding a secondary helical coil which comprises pushing a wire into a cavity die to cause it to intermittently turn to helical form and emerge from said die. and causing a separator element to successively pass between the turns of the helical coil while the latter is stationary. after emerging from said die, to bend said helical coil into a secondary helix, 4and intermittently linterrupting the'operation oi' said separator element while the primary coil is rotating from said die.

9. The method oi' winding a wire into a.V primary helix and then into a secondary helix, which comprises pushing die, causing it to emerge therefrom intermittentlyatumatatimaasa along a given -path, and applying force between said periods of intermittent movement against the individual turns of said helix in sequence, to

cause said primary helix to take the form of a secondary helix.

10."The method of making -coiled coil filaments which comprises intermittently moving a lilament wire into a die to successively produce individual turns of helical form, .and individually y separating said turns along one side between said intermittent movements, to cause the wire to secondary helix.

RAYMOND H; BEEBE.

said wire into a cavity' primary helix and pass 

